Canadian cruisers...flights to FLL...help!

[pianobar]

Are any other southern Ontario residents finding it difficult to get reasonable fares on flights to FLL or any nearby airport for this coming March??

 

Leaving the dollar exchange aside (and that's hard to do!!) and forgetting about leaving from Toronto (YYZ) for which you have to take out a second mortgage, I'm usually able to find reasonable rates out of Buffalo or Detroit via Delta or JetBlue. Not this year!

 

Perish the thought I have to consider Spirit Airlines (which I took one year and vowed never to fly again) but their schedules are horrible and fees for baggage when you have 4 travelers makes it not worth it.

 

Has any southern Ontario cruiser found any good flight deals to Florida this March?:confused:

[BlueHerons]

Are any other southern Ontario residents finding it difficult to get reasonable fares on flights to FLL or any nearby airport for this coming March??

 

Leaving the dollar exchange aside (and that's hard to do!!) and forgetting about leaving from Toronto (YYZ) for which you have to take out a second mortgage, I'm usually able to find reasonable rates out of Buffalo or Detroit via Delta or JetBlue. Not this year!

 

Perish the thought I have to consider Spirit Airlines (which I took one year and vowed never to fly again) but their schedules are horrible and fees for baggage when you have 4 travelers makes it not worth it.

 

Has any southern Ontario cruiser found any good flight deals to Florida this March?:confused:

 

The good deals went months ago.

 

You are a little over sixty days away for airfares in peak season.

[pianobar]

Maybe so. For the past 8 years I've purchased our tickets in December or January for March flights after following the fares for several months and did very well on fares. I guess this year my luck ran out.

[Kamloops50]

Again because of the exchange rates , airfares to the states don't seem to be a good price. Have seen some specials from Air Canada in the last month.

[squadron]

Maybe so. For the past 8 years I've purchased our tickets in December or January for March flights after following the fares for several months and did very well on fares. I guess this year my luck ran out.

 

I booked with Flight Network - Air Canada to Ottawa - then to FLL, home FLL to Toronto then Edmonton. Maybe different cities each way might help .

[pianobar]

Thanks. Will look again at Air Canada.

[Langley Cruisers]

Thanks. Will look again at Air Canada.

 

Do be careful - my BIL booked Rouge and he said it was the worst flight of his life. :(

[LuCruise]

I know. Flights are crazy...and it sure adds to your overall cost. I also checked flying out of Buffalo which people say is usually a better deal, but it saved us nothing. We did happen to snag a good deal, but it's not on a top airline (i.e. Air Canada) so am a bit worried about it and regretting it. Wish we lived closer but it's too long a drive.

[flyingandcruising]

Are any other southern Ontario residents finding it difficult to get reasonable fares on flights to FLL or any nearby airport for this coming March??

 

Leaving the dollar exchange aside (and that's hard to do!!) and forgetting about leaving from Toronto (YYZ) for which you have to take out a second mortgage, I'm usually able to find reasonable rates out of Buffalo or Detroit via Delta or JetBlue. Not this year!

 

Perish the thought I have to consider Spirit Airlines (which I took one year and vowed never to fly again) but their schedules are horrible and fees for baggage when you have 4 travelers makes it not worth it.

 

Has any southern Ontario cruiser found any good flight deals to Florida this March?:confused:

 

Are you talking about march break? I always have found Detroit the best prices. We took spirit last year and it wasn't so bad. But we ended up saving lots of money over taking Delta (which is what we have always taken in the past). Just watch out for the luggage weights. They are 40lbs i believe not 50. we found that out the hard way on the way back. and of course you need to pay for your carry-on but we managed without.

 

Another option you can check, is out of Rochester, NY. we have taken that route lots of times and its closer than DTW. There are direct flights i believe on Alegiant Airlines.

 

Try also Spirit from niagara int'l. Its a late flight, but cheap. We have never taken it though.

[pianobar]

Thanks for the suggestions! Yes, I'm looking at other cities like Rochester. I may have to break my vow and take the dreaded Spirit Airlines out of DTW or Buffalo.

[jtdlmc]

Frontier is now flying out of Detroit and have some very cheap flights to Orlando. I have never flown with them or know anything about them but dates I checked were less than $300 return DTW to MCO nonstop flight.

Edited December 21, 2015 by jtdlmc

[DanJ]

March Break is a tough one. Even Southwest leading up to that week is looking at $500 each way from Buffalo. It's one of the reasons we sail in January, although with the kids heading to high school next year, this will be the last year we pull them out of school for vacation. I jumped on what was great fares on Southwest back in June for our upcoming January cruise and right now, those same flights are 60 bucks cheaper than I bought them for (under $200 round trip, non stop flights).

 

Another one to look at is Flint, Michigan (FNT is the airport code). If you are east of London, it's the same distance to drive to as Detroit is if you cross at Port Huron, and sometimes you get a sale from there.

[pianobar]

Thanks!

[Kamloops50]

My first choice airline for flying to a cruise is Westjet > I've been om Air Canada Rouge in the Premium economy row. DW looked back and said that I wouldn't be able to sit comfortable in the back. I'm 6-2 with back knees.

I tried booking Westjet for January 2016 . Air Business class was cheaper than Premium Economy on Westjet.

[LHT28]

We flew Westjet home from FLL

I am 5' 4" & my knees were up against the seat in front ...never again

 

Flew Rouge down in the Premium Plus it was fine not sure I would do economy

 

Any flights to MIA that would work for your budget ?

[B and B Rookie Cannucks]

We often fly out of Syracuse but with the crappy Canadian dollar we will be flying out of Toronto . We have a direct flight in one direction and a hop in the other. I book through Expedia. The other thing you could check on is charter flights like sunwing etc. Also if you are a little flexible in your arrival and departure dates you can sometimes save a few hundred. Our air for February is costing approx a thousand for 2 return.

Edited December 21, 2015 by B and B Rookie Cannucks

[Almond_tea]

Hello,

Just thought I would suggest using google flights to search. I often use it to gauge prices for travel. You don't actually book through Google, but it aggros all the flight info for quick viewing. A quick look shows flights from yyz to MIA for 350-400 CAD pp. I don't fly to MIA often so not sure if that is good or bad price. Link below for an example search.

 

Cheers

 

https://www.google.ca/flights/#search;f=YYZ,YTZ;t=MIA;d=2016-03-01;r=2016-03-12

[oilsand]

I realize that dates determine march prices but i am seeing prices from toronto to fort lauderdale mid march for 375 CAD which I feel is not bad

[DanJ]

I realize that dates determine march prices but i am seeing prices from toronto to fort lauderdale mid march for 375 CAD which I feel is not bad

 

March Break in Ontario this year is March 12-20, and it looks like the OP is cruising on the 13th.. In looking at Air Canada's website, those 2 weekends (starting on Thursday the 10th actually) are very high priced, but mid-week travel is quite reasonable.

[Smitty251]

Hi - I recently got a West Jet RBC MasterCard (I have no affiliation with WestJet or MasterCard) just mentioning this option.

 

http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/credit-cards/travel-credit-cards/westjet-world-elite-mastercard.html

 

There is a $99 yearly fee for the card - but you get a $99 companion flight every year also your first checked bag is free for you and 8 of your companions - that saves $25 per person per flight.

 

$250 free West Jet dollars when you get the card - I just booked a return flight for my DW and myself from Ottawa to FLL in February for $550 taxes included - saved about $600.

 

Just a thought

 

Good luck

Smitty

[LuCruise]

Keep in mind that if you fly out of another city, that you may have to pay for hotel for a night (if an early flight out) . So the savings on the fight would have to be worth it.

[_beachgirl_]

Are any other southern Ontario residents finding it difficult to get reasonable fares on flights to FLL or any nearby airport for this coming March??

 

Leaving the dollar exchange aside (and that's hard to do!!) and forgetting about leaving from Toronto (YYZ) for which you have to take out a second mortgage, I'm usually able to find reasonable rates out of Buffalo or Detroit via Delta or JetBlue. Not this year!

 

Perish the thought I have to consider Spirit Airlines (which I took one year and vowed never to fly again) but their schedules are horrible and fees for baggage when you have 4 travelers makes it not worth it.

 

Has any southern Ontario cruiser found any good flight deals to Florida this March?:confused:

 

I was just in this exact predicament for January. Prices are sky high and with the dollar the way it is, my anxiety was the same way.

 

We looked into the same 3 airports. We ended up finding a decent price out of Buffalo on Southwest. We thought about Spirit long and hard, but after a lot of consideration we paid the additional money for Southwest for the peace of mind. Good luck to you.

[RG306]

The good deals went months ago.

 

 

 

You are a little over sixty days away for airfares in peak season.

 

 

Unfortunately, I've found that being from southwestern Ontario and wanting direct flights at a reasonable cost means booking well in advance. For our March Break cruise we booked flights at the beginning of July. DTW-MIA/FLL-DTW direct with Delta (good flight times) $350 pp. Made even nicer with a credit from last year. Now if only I was smart enough to pay off the cruise back then, the exchange now is awful.

 

Take a look at experimenting with different airports taking into consideration transportation costs. If you're willing to connect there are more options.

[pianobar]

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

I did a lot of looking. Best I could find is out of Cleveland which is only a 4 hr drive from us here in southern Ontario.

 

We're going down to FLL via JetBlue and back from FLL via United all non-stop. Price in total is $311 pp USD. Not bad! And very favourable departure times.

 

Hopefully the weather in March will be favourable for driving around the lake.

 

We usually fly out of BUF or DTW but if anyone else in Ontario is west of London, consider Cleveland.

[LHT28]

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

I did a lot of looking. Best I could find is out of Cleveland which is only a 4 hr drive from us here in southern Ontario.

 

.

Are you driving down the same day as the flight?

 

One year heading south we hit the lake effect snow squalls we only made it as far as Erie the roads were so bad

Hope the weather holds out for you

Edited December 23, 2015 by LHT28